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Many people respond to change processes in companies or in their personal lives by looking at data, facts or lists of pros and cons. To make the change process successful, it is also important to coach people’s emotions to enable them to face their new future on a stable footing. The wingwave coaching method can help to establish the best possible emotional balance for change processes in line with the motto “change the change”, and this fast-acting coaching can contribute towards successful or satisfying change processes, not only with regard to stress management but also by increasing enthusiasm, confidence and decisiveness.

One example is the phenomenon of the well-known “change puzzle”. Here we are dealing with positive, pleasing goals in life – there seems to be nothing to stop you turning them into reality but people still fail to accomplish the job: a modernisation, a new way of behaving, a decision. Successful coaching here takes account of the special structure of the adult brain: even neurons which are far apart are now extensively “hard wired” and nerve pathways have established good insulation which has increased the transmission of stimuli nearly a hundredfold by comparison with a child’s brain (Spitzer M. , Wie Erwachsene denken und lernen, 2012 als Audiobook/ Spitzer M., How Adults Think and Learn, 2012 as audio book).

As a result, an adult’s brain becomes increasingly self-absorbed. New external stimuli are treated less as an opportunity to learn but rather to make associations as in: “I’ve seen that before!” or: “I know all that stuff!”

People always think new experiences could be something positive – and for children this may well be true as they are still curious. They experience novelty, the unexpected as a “positive tingle” as their brains crave new structures; they are still “under construction” – i.e. not yet in their completed mode. The “finished adult” on the other hand experiences the emotion of “surprise” increasingly as a nuisance, and this feeling of discomfort can be overcome by the specific coaching of emotions. Wingwave coaches help to bring about a state in which new experiences can have a stimulating, exciting effect on their subjects’ emotions and be seen as a positive challenge.

Body Change: even a small self-coaching exercise taking in bodily perception can help. Because the mental blockage in the change puzzle is in reality a blockage of our entire organism, and in this case the body “talks” because the brain naturally belongs to our body as an organ. To show this, just do a simple test: fold the fingers of your two hands together, including your thumbs – one of the two thumbs is now on top if you look at your interlaced hands. Now disentangle your hands and fold them again the other way around – so that the other thumb is now on top. Now listen to your feelings, what do they tell you? “Strange, funny, unusual”, is the frequent answer. We have no established brain cell links for this way of folding our hands, and we will not do it like that again because of the strange, unusual feeling of something different that it gives us; we will stick with the “ingrained” version. That is what the self-coaching exercise is based on: “body change”, carried out in combination with the wingwave music. The wingwave music relieves stress and relaxes, making you creative and open to new experiences – even for new ways of folding your hands.

You simply listen to the wingwave music for two minutes. The music continues while you go through the next steps.

You think about a sensible change which is imminent or which would be good for you – but somehow the flow of change is blocked.

Now fold your hands “the wrong way round”, explore the strange physical sensation and continue to think about the change you wish to make.

Concentrate on your feelings, and experience how the strange feeling in your hands gradually gives way to a physically friendly feeling, as the “new experience” is now accepted and the neural paths start to develop new connections.

Now think about the subject of your change and see for yourself how your familiarity with the new experience of your hands gradually spreads to your overall thoughts and feelings.

Working with the effects of the body’s “success switch” is based on a principle that is classified under the term “embodiment” in psychology. “Embodiment” is a psychological approach that describes the resonance of our physical awareness with our emotional experience and our cognitive performance; there are many interesting studies on this subject. One of them also looks at different motions and it was conducted under the leadership of psychologist, Prof. Dr. Johannes Michalak at the University of Witten/Herdecke. He investigated how the cognitive powers of students was affected by their gait. He asked one group to let their head and shoulders droop while walking, i.e. to creep around in a deliberately “depressed” manner. A second group was requested to portray a “happy gait pattern” with their head raised and an upright posture. Although the subjects enacted the two “gait modes” deliberately, in a way that was almost “superimposed”, there were clear distinctions in a test that was subsequently carried out.

Demonstrable connection between body and mind

The students taking part in the trial were given positive words (e.g. “brave”, “attractive”) and negative words (e.g. “boring”, “stupid”). They had to decide whether these words chimed with their mood. Then after eight minutes, a test was conducted that had not been announced, and the results speak for themselves: subjects who walked in a “depressed mode” remembered more negative words while those that indulged in “happy” walking retained many more positive words. Johannes Michalak commented as follows: “This shows that the way we walk affects whether we tend to process information positively or negatively. There is a connection, therefore, between the body, in this case the gait, and the mind, in this case the information we retain. Results like these could be used in future to develop treatment options for depression which work by changing physical processes”. The result reveals that our body also sends signals to our mind and psyche – so the resonance also works “upwards” from the body to the world of the mind and not just “downwards” from our thoughts to what our body experiences.

Motion training support with “happy wingwave walk”

There is a simple exercise to train your movements to support this insight: walk “happily”, sit “in a good mood”, run in a deliberately “exhilerated” manner. Even if it seems artificial and contrived to you, your body will send positive signals to your brain through your posture alone, and this will improve your mood. Support this training with the wingwave music; we call this combination the “happy wingwave walk”. The wingwave balance training can also help you to work this method into your everyday life. You will find wingwave coaches and wingwave trainers at www.wingwave.com.

October 14th is World “Face up to your Fears Day”. Anxiety disorders are among the most frequent psychiatric illnesses. However, the emotion “fear” is at a first normal and sensible protective function of our neurobiology. Fear and the stress hormones connected with it increase in a matter of seconds the readiness to get oneself physically out of harm’s way immediately. Energy for fast running is mobilised, the heart beats more intensively, the muscles tense themselves for a sprint, the blood vessels in the upper part of the body constrict and those in the lower part widen for a better circulation of the blood in our legs. The cerebrum – the seat of our reason – is switched off so that all we can think is “Get out of here” and do not allow ourselves to be distracted from this by thoughts along the lines of “Let me just make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of my planned flight.” Too many thoughts hinder a successful flight – that was at least the case in the Stone Age. In today’s civilisation, however, it would be a pity should the brain of the examination candidate confuse the examiner with a sabre-toothed tiger and cease thinking as a result. In such a situation it is hard for us to appreciate the originally positive intention of fear as a lifesaver.

Cause in the Limbic System: Fear does not disappear from being talked about

The amygdala is responsible for strong feelings of fear. It comes in a double pack: two small paired cores in the brain of the emotions – known as the limbic system – which develop a particularly high degree of activity when the nervous system is highly excited. This area of the brain has no knowledge of language and is immune to well-meaning persuasion. One can explain to a person who is afraid of flying that, according to the statistics, the aeroplane is one of the safest means of transport – it will not do any good. We must rather find some other way of communicating to the amygdala and to the limbic system that an examination, an aeroplane or a certain place may be regarded as safe or neutral and that we therefore do not require the “Group from the Stone Age” in this instance. wingwave coaching therefore addresses the emotional centre directly and works precisely and effectively at source: the place where the feeling of fear is managed is also the one at which it is reduced.

Fears as “isolated blockades”: Emotions Coaching such as the wingwave Method can also help here

If an issue of fear does not block one’s entire life but merely strikes at certain moments, one speaks not of a psychiatric disorder bur of “isolated blockades”. Therapy is not always the immediate necessity in such a case. Research has repeatedly shown that a mere two hours of wingwave coaching can offer effective help in neutralising fears lastingly. Here, the coach works by harmonising the collaboration between the two halves of the brain, which enables one to deal with the fear blockade autonomously. Individual coaching and fear management with the aid of wingwave music – such as when working with the wingwave app (iPhone and Android) or with music from the online-shop are available on the wingwave shop.

Going back to work after the summer break can be a challenge for many of us when it comes to maintaining the level of relaxation gained on holiday. Maybe you’ve just been listening to the waves on the beach, and no sooner have you returned from holiday fresh and well rested, than a flood of emails is there to greet you at your desk. In the present day and age we find ourselves all too often at the mercy of a mass of information telling us that we have to be more and more productive. For many the response is even physical, and the information is experienced as a “mountain” or a “flood” in which they drown helplessly. These images show that our subjective consciousness suspects a natural disaster and sends stress signals to our nervous system. Freezing and a desire to flee are the consequence, and work becomes tough and laborious.

Always-on mentality as stress factor

Business emails are on the increase everywhere – it’s entirely practical to fire off your concerns and at the same time to copy in your colleagues and partners, regardless of what time zone you happen to be in. This permanent availability becomes an increasing burden. The so-called always-on mentality is a stress factor. There are even research projects devoted to the phenomenon of email mountains, and the IT sector is developing more and more programmes which are supposed to make it easier for us to handle them. It is of course helpful to create new ways of organising information. Outlook, for example, offers ways of structuring work with emails. The auto-correction option, the spellcheck function or the decision to use an easily legible typeface can make things easier. But of course changing the way we think is not so simple. Especially when things get hectic, we tend to fall back into old patterns of behaviour. Everyone should find a way to relieve the stress of everyday life on a permanent basis which is liberating beyond the annual holiday and which counters tension.

Freedom from stress

You can counteract the stress factor with a wingwave CD of your choice or the wingwave app, thereby preserving the freshness and relaxation brought home from holiday. Various measurements have shown that the specially composed wingwave music calms the physical sensations of stress within two to three minutes, and lowers the heart rate – even when you are active. So listen briefly to the music and only then open your emails, look at and process them. This strategy is also suitable for intense learning phases – pick up the material you are studying after the music has already “sunk in”. The result is that mountains shrink, floods become gentle streams, the subjective consciousness leaves the world of danger – and in this way a sensible workflow emerges which takes control of the little letters in the rectangular screens.

Wingwave music helps you to relax also when you are not on holiday, it releases blockages and brings demonstrable success. The free version of the app already contains a helpful guide to self-coaching. http://wingwave-shop.com/

Yeeeessssss – shout the fans but football stars and coaches often say: “It’s getting serious now”, putting on a correspondingly determined face. According to our studies on the subject of wingwave coaching at the Cologne Sports College – carried out by qualified psychologist, Marco Rathschlag – an attitude embodied by: “If it’s important, we really get serious”, could even be an unnecessary hindrance to sporting performance.

The emotion “enjoyment” releases high performance potential.

The wingwave research results show that sportsmen unlock their highest physical energy levels when they experience enjoyment; they can jump their highest and run their fastest when they are enjoying what they are doing – it even applies to endurance sports. These results for physical energy are, of course, also extremely relevant if you want to be successful at football.

“If it’s important, you have to be serious!” – a dogma of many high-performance sportsmen

In the field of sports coaching, we conducted a simple check with high-performance sportsmen – among them football players – using the myostatic test, by testing the following statements:

“Sport is allowed to be fun.”

“Football is allowed to be fun.”

“A World Cup is allowed to be fun.”

The results give food for thought: when the word enjoyment or fun was paired with words such as “championship” or “competition”, the ring broke on nearly every sportsperson. The subjects tested were overwhelmingly and above all subconsciously of the opinion that these positive emotions have no place in those crucial moments when they have to perform. To explain the test: if a coachee is unable to keep the ring formed by his thumb and forefinger closed when force is applied to it while he is undergoing the myostatic test, this means: “The statement triggers stress!”

Resource coaching with wingwave for an inspiring belief system

This is the starting point for the wingwave coach to use targeted belief coaching to enable the sportsperson to experience their best possible strength and muscle control through the emotion of enjoyment at the very most important moment of their performance. “A World Cup is allowed to be fun” tests strongly after the coaching and unleashes energy which gives physical strength and intelligent responses.

wingwave coaching in general is a successful, fast and lastingly effective “stress buster” against all types of stadium stress such as tension in the face of the bogey team, chanting from the opposition fans, media hype, travel and climate discomforts, to name but a few examples. Inspired by the football World Cup in Brazil, I think of the many sports coaching sessions which have led to success using wingwave coaching. In 2007 wingwave gave wings to the German handball national team, and they became world champions. Golfers, ice-skaters, sailors and dancers have also been able to triumph with the support of wingwave coaches.

The days are warmer again, nature lures us outside. It could be more sport yet again, however, many people have the right intentions, but not the right actions. Children, on the other hand, –automatically love movement with ease, without any strings attached. They romp around and play when they can – it’s just fun for them. You go through a natural rhythm of relaxation, concentration on a particular toy, and then joy of motor activity. We’ve all experienced this natural joy of motion in the first years of life as a daily companion. From the beginning of school, the body receives the systematic command to “sit still” or it says: “the child cannot sit still, it still cannot go to school.” What do children think – even if they are not a “Zachary Philip”? “I am big, I can sit long – I must go to school!” Sitting is associated with this, even at the tender age of classroom success and career. Overall, our society has an ambivalent, almost divided attitude to the subject of movement. Of course, movement is healthy. On the other hand, it is regarded as an ornament of civilization, that man can sit for a long time: at school, at the dinner table, in the conference. This silence is rewarded by dominates it as polite and cultured referred. Children are so often reminded not to move around or to fidget, to be not so ‘wild’. So, movement is even linked with pejorative terms.

Every healthy person has 656 muscles, where they account for 40%, with the woman about 23% of total body mass in men. These muscles, through a well-developed muscle memory, are stored in the brain, in which more than 10,000 movements are represented. A simple example are processes such as riding a bicycle, which remain with us our entire life as “Flesh and blood”. Our muscles store various “commands” to harness, rest, relax and organise them reliably, at the unconscious level. We are talking here about muscle memory.

The prohibition of movement from childhood can block us in adulthood in terms of the phenomenon of “Muscle memory”. Many people in our society would love to move more, but are still blocked by a ban in doing so from childhood. In this respect, many people are not lazy, but only the urge to move is solidified at the unconscious level. This phenomenon in hypno therapy is called “Katalepsien”. Hypnosis can change the stored commands in the muscles and you remember again the fun and enjoyment of active movement. So, the return of movement pleasure can be achieved and “it works again!”. Sport, jogging, walking feels easy and good, long periods of sitting only create excruciating boredom. This works at a unconscious level, naturally and automatically. Support with self-coaching is offered by the wingwave-Music, for example.

Winter is the time we catch colds and we often hear the statement “I don’t want a cold!” This intention is of course useful – especially since many “catch one” at this time of year. Since the brain can deal better with positive goals, everything arriving in the brain as a result of this intention is linked to the word “cold”, including all associations: a red nose, sneezing, a sluggish flu feeling. The successful “brain user”, however, says to himself: “I want to be healthy and full of energy all through the winter!” The brain combines these positive words with a pleasant tension in the body, with a free respiratory tract and a good mood. Because the brain controls our body, it now sends healthy signals to the cell of the body and the immune system as a result of this word power – and this is very important for each health effect. Our immune cells are continuously on the move for us in our body. They identify and expel intruders and protect us from diseases. Research in psychoneuroimmunology, which deals with the interaction of the psyche, the nervous system and the immune system, has shown that immune cells are as well built structurally as brain cells. They absorb the same chemical neuro-transmitters and may share information in seconds. So basically, immune cells are wandering brain cells. Our immune cells register everything that moves us and thus also learn what is going on in the brain. Positive and negative stimuli – even words – are reported to and stored immediately in the immune system. Stress definitely causes imbalance to the body’s defense. It is well known that a stressed test candidate gets lip herpes faster, and an allergy sufferer similarly gets a rash faster. Conversely, research has recorded significantly faster healing success after injury or surgery, if patients experience positive emotions like gratitude, confidence, or even happiness. For this reason, there are hospital clowns for children. They often work with stunning success for the recovery processes of the small patients. Positive emotions have an effect on the efficiency and regulation of the immune system. However, it is not sufficient to create a beautiful inner world via positive thinking, or visualizing – this is only the beginning. The important thing is to perceive a pleasurable feeling with all your senses, also in the “world out there”. Pleasure is very important as a “food of sense” – so enjoy with all your senses! Enjoy music, meet some friends or treat yourself to some flowers. Frequent small daily highlights are far more effective than a big surprise. The daily ‘positive kick” strengthens your psyche and defense in every season.

Enjoy many self-coaching tools already for free! Wingwave self-coaching enables you to strengthen your inner balance, your mental potential and your general performance.
Available in English, German and Spanish languagehttps://itunes.apple.com/app/id722762732

The fall makes itself felt noticeable in many places now. In my new book “Quick help with anxiety and stress” (brought out in German) there is the chapter “The rustling of the leaves: From snake bite to autumn phobia” in which a little story describes a catchy example of unconscious effectively stress stimuli: It is fall and one of our ancestors in the Stone Age is preparing dinner for himself. Suddenly, he hears the sound of rustling leaves. He turns to the pile of leaves behind him – but it’s already too late! He has been bitten by a poisonous viper that was snaking its way through the leaves and caused the noise.

The man faints, is ill for a few days – but he survives the accident. Since then, he has a horror of each snake. But, not only of gray snakes, even at the sight of green , orange , or striped snakes he leaps up into the air with fear. Even when he sees a slightly curved piece of wood on the floor he is alarmed.

At this point, we speak about generalization. The fear arises as soon as he sees something that reminds him of the viper that once bit him. Our Stone Age man forgets the traumatic event over the months. Now it becomes fall and he goes to the woods again in order to hunt a dinner for himself. Suddenly the leaves of a tree fall down and cause a rustling noise. He is totally startled and does not know why! He goes to see a therapist – perhaps at that time there already was one – and has the following lamentations: “I am a brave hunter and have recently a fear of autumn! I am terribly afraid of rustling leaves – what is wrong with me?”

This way people are often afraid of things and don´t understand why. Our brain functions highly associatively. So it happens very often, that in coaching and training “the rustling of leaves” is treated, instead of the real stress trigger. With wingwave we find the actual active trigger precisely accurate. This leads to an exceedingly fast and straight to the point effect of this method.

I will give the next wingwave education in Toronto, Hamburg and Mexico City, this October. Many portrayals of me and of wingwave are designed with the Monarch butterfly. The American Monarch is a particularly nice specimen drawn and striking orange-black. It is very impressive that these North American animals cover up to 3600 km during their migrations in fall. With luck, I will see one of them in America. Here is a video that shows, among other things, the beauty of these animals: http://youtu.be/D2Qx93RChhQ

I travel from Linz after a brief stopover in Hamburg directly to Spain in the beautiful, colorful city of Barcelona. There I will give in the Institut Gestalt as a guest trainer wingwave seminars. Although, I have been teaching now for the fourth year in a row in Barcelona, something seems to me pretty much Spanish. “It seems Spanish to me” is the German saying for “there’s something fishy”. Of course there´s nothing “fishy”, but the proverb comes just to my mind. There is a German book of my friend and linguist Dr. Corina King Linek entitled “das kommt mir Spanisch vor” which means translated “It seems Spanish to me”. It deals solely and alone with Spanish proverbs in a humorous way and shows what happens, when they get translated literally. Great fun! Of course it´s similarly with English and German sayings. Germans do not know “A fat lot I care!”, for example. They say “das ist mir schnurzpiepegal”, this means something like “This is extremely constantly to me” But there also exist similarities! “Where there’s a will, there’s a way“ can be translated literally. In this sense, I am looking forward to my trip to Barcelona and wish to any reader that they find themselves now in the summer time some new energy for new ways.